The 2008–09 season was the 117th season of competitive football played by Liverpool. It began on 1 July 2008 and concluded on 20 June 2009, with competitive matches played between August and May. Liverpool finished the previous season in fourth place behind Manchester United and Chelsea and Arsenal . The club ended the campaign in second place, four points behind Manchester United, with a record of 25 wins, 11 draws and 2 losses. Liverpool fared below par in the cups, eliminated in the fourth round of the FA Cup and Football League Cup by Everton and Tottenham Hotspur respectively. They exited the UEFA Champions League in the quarter-finals to Chelsea.

Liverpool purchased a few players in the transfer market early in the season, with Philipp Degen, Andrea Dossena and Diego Cavalieri arriving in early July. Those arrivals were supplemented with the addition of striker Robbie Keane from Tottenham and midfielder Albert Riera later in the transfer window. Goalkeeper Scott Carson and striker Peter Crouch were sold in the summer transfer window, while six months after arriving Keane was sold back to Tottenham in the winter transfer window.

Liverpool began the season in good form; they won eight of their first ten matches before suffering a loss against Tottenham. They picked up their form after the loss and a 5–1 victory over Newcastle United at the end of 2008, ensured they would be top going into the new year. Three successive draws at the turn of the year meant Manchester United caught Liverpool and a 2–0 loss at the end of February to Midlesbrough dented their hopes of winning the league. After the loss, Liverpool won ten of their final eleven matches, which included a 4–1 victory over Manchester United. The run was not enough to overhaul United and they finished four points behind in second place.

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